I guess I posted because nothing like this had ever happened to me before. I've been playing tennis for 10 years. I'm a middle-of-the-pack 3.5, as is my partner. My partner and I were 5 wins 1 loss all season in the very same league. I had played each of the opponents last year, though not together. They are clearly high 3.5, could be argued they are 4.0's. But even so I sometimes "play up" for the 4.0 team and have never come close to getting stomped like that.

This weekend I gotta "get back on the horse". I have a 4.0 Men's doubles tomorrow, and 7.0 Mixed on Sunday.

Nice people on here wish me luck. Others at least abuse me in an amusing way

You didn't mention whether you and your partner were playing your A game on this occasion. If you were playing your very best and they just mowed you down, then you have to ask whether you're in the right place on the team. Is this an anomaly, or do you lose a lot?

There are so many reasons why we lose instead of win. Usually it's a simple combo of they play steady and well and you make too many errors.

Don't worry about the score, it just records as an "L". Learn from the loss and next time, play a stronger match against them if you get the opportunity. Nothing's sweeter than beating someone who previously stomped you! Especially if you feel they're equal in ability.

Buford T Justice, that's some great statistics out of Laver's book. Man, the difference of just winning 4% more points than the opponent makes a staggering 27% greater chance in winning a set.

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Its a great book.....more or less a series of articles. I am no student of the game, but the advice in this book seems just as relevant today as 40 years ago.

And, yes...the way tennis scoring works, it is incredible how much of a difference a few points makes. To add to your comment......if someone is just 10% more likely to win a given point, the odds of them taking the set is 97% and the most likely score is 6-1! That surely appears a complete court mopping, blowout extraordinaire, but in reality the players could have been awful close. At the 70% chance of winning a point level, the set is all but guaranteed to end 6-1 or better.

IMO, this is where the tennis scoring system, and its magnification of differences, can get "funny". One could get wiped out 6-1 and truly be outmatched, or one could have just not won the apparent "right" points, was very nearly as good as the opponent, and still lost 6-1. Such is the tennis scoring system! I think we all know, after being on the receiving end of such scorelines, whether or not it was a "statistical drubbing" or a "real drubbing"...although the match result doesnt care which.